International Criminal Court Called to Investigate Biden's Complicity in War Crimes

A US-based non-profit has called on the International Criminal Court to investigate former President Joe Biden and two members of his Cabinet for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

The request, filed by Democracy for the Arab World Now (Dawn) last month but made public by the group on Monday, calls for the ICC to investigate Biden, as well as former US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, for their “supportive roles in aiding and abetting, and willfully facilitating, Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.”

Last year, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif, who Hamas recently confirmed was killed, on charges of war crimes related to the Gaza war, The Guardian reports.

Dawn's 172-page document, which the group said was prepared with the support of ICC-registered lawyers and other war crimes experts, alleges that former US officials violated articles of the Rome Statute, the court's founding charter, in their support for Israel.

According to a press release, the group's submission to the ICC outlines what it describes as "a series of deliberate and targeted decisions by these officials to provide military, political and public support to facilitate Israel's crimes in Gaza," including "at least $17.9 billion in arms supplies, intelligence, sharing, targeted assistance, diplomatic protection and official endorsement of Israel's crimes, despite knowledge that such support has significantly facilitated and will continue to facilitate serious abuses."

One excerpt from the materials claims that “by consistently and unconditionally providing political and military support to Israel while fully aware of the specific crimes committed by Netanyahu, Gallant, and their subordinates, President Biden, Secretary Blinken, and Secretary Austin willfully enabled those crimes to be committed while at least aware of the specific crimes committed by Netanyahu, Gallant, and their subordinates.” The group’s intent to commit Israeli crimes, if not to further such criminal activity, was not intended to be used by the group.

Dawn Executive Director Sarah Leah Whitson emphasized in a statement that “Biden, Blinken, and Secretary Austin have not only ignored and excused the overwhelming evidence of Israel’s grotesque and deliberate crimes by overruling their own staff’s recommendations to stop arms sales to Israel, but they have redoubled their efforts to provide Israel with unconditional military and political support to ensure that it can commit its atrocities.”

The statement also pointed to the political support the US has given to Israel by vetoing numerous UN Security Council resolutions calling for a ceasefire.

Earlier this month, Donald Trump signed an executive order authorizing aggressive economic sanctions against the ICC, accusing the body of “unlawful and baseless actions” against the US and Israel, The Guardian recalls.

In a statement released Monday, Dawn also said Trump's order against the ICC could expose him to "individual criminal liability for obstruction of justice."

The group also added that if Trump carries out his proposed plan to forcibly remove all Palestinians from Gaza and seize the territory, it would also hold him “individually accountable for war crimes and the crime of aggression.”

Raed Jarrar, Dawn's director of advocacy, said the plan deserved an ICC investigation, "not only for aiding Israeli crimes, but also for ordering forced transfers, which is a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute."